Low dose Naltrexone

I knew one person who did very well on low dose naltrexone (LDN). It's another of those odd central nervous system drugs that is being tried out in all sorts of disorders. Originally used to help detox patients going off of opioids and to combat alcohol dependence very low doses of it are being examined in fibromyalgia, AIDS, Parkinson's, MS and other auto-immune diseases, autism, etc.

I particularly like it's ability to induce erections. The ME/CFS patient I knew who tried it occasionally couldn't get to sleep because of his erections - an automatic winner in my book.

In this recent study on FM patients LDN was described as being an effective, tolerable and inexpensive treatment for them. It's effects occur because

Naltrexone, in addition to antagonizing opioid receptors on neurons, also inhibits microglia activity in the central nervous system. At low doses (4.5 mg), naltrexone may inhibit the activity of microglia and reverse central and peripheral inflammation.

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They found that

Low-dose naltrexone reduced fibromyalgia symptoms in the entire cohort, with a greater than 30% reduction of symptoms over placebo. In addition, laboratory visits showed that mechanical and heat pain thresholds were improved by the drug.

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If you have a high sedimentation rate you might be in luck.

Individuals with higher sedimentation rates (indicating general inflammatory processes) had the greatest reduction of symptoms in response to low-dose naltrexone.

An alternative doc put me on Naltrexone together with Transfer Factor and IP6, way back like 10 years ago, but I was way too ill for it to phase my symptoms. But I am considering re-trying the Naltrexone. The main reason is that I had a decrease in my symptoms a few years ago when I had to go on opioid pain meds for sciatica. Seems to be worth a shot since both have to do with attaching to opioid receptors. I don't care for Transfer Factor....doesn't seem to do much for me. And the IP6 is an immune stimulant, which I need to avoid.

Here are my 2 cents. I tried low dose Naltexone and didn`t like its effects. It didn`t help at all either. But then I didn`t try it for very long either. Not sure how long you are supposed to try it for. I have constant aching and contractions from Myofascial Pain Syndrome, though not with FM but with ME/CFS, whichever one of those I have. I could use some opiods! No, actually I need to stretch and massage these places, to keep trying to breath well too.

After 4 years on Oxycodone, and one on Trammadol, which was just as difficult to get off of as the Oxycodone was, I can say I have less pain on the low dose Naltrexone than I did when on the pain killers.

In fact presently my pain level is lower than at any time during the last 20 years, taking LD Naltrexone 4.5 mg.

I had to be off all pain medications for 10 days before I went on the LDN. I started February 1, 2009. For the first several months, each month that I took it, I felt better than the month before.

I don't know if my pain relief is decreasing any more, but last night I went swing dancing, and today I was able to swim 10 laps. There are other activities too, and I know I am doing more than when I was on Oxycodone.

However, it is two years later, and I have done other therapies such as the robotic therapy and Prolotherapy, both of which have helped to reduce my pain to a level that I could go off of the pain killers in order to go on the Naltrexone.

I do have pain in response to the activities that I have been doing. the LDN has not eliminated all pain, however, I don't think I would be doing all of these activities without it.

I hope you all can follow my line of thinking and that I haven't confused you all...

I have used the Mulberry Compounding Pharmacy in Mulberry Florida for years, as does one of my major Doctors for his clinic. They are very good and I have found their prices to be more reasonable than other places I have called.

The Doctor can fax your prescription to them, and they mail it to you by FedX. Or, you can just mail your prescription to them along with your insurance information, etc.,

Cort:
I resolved most of the sciatica with a combination of walking to strengthen the problem area, and Prolotherapy with Hacketts solution.

Maybe you will have to take a vacation to Florida to get rid of that problem.

The worst sciatic pain I had was right after a surgery over my sacroilliac joint. Following the surgery, if I sat on anything soft like an easy chair, recliner, sofa etc., within minutes the sciatic pain took off.

The pain went down to the toes in both feet. If I took a walk, the pain moved up the leg a bit every day.

I bought a solid oak glider chair and I could sit in that without any problems. I noticed that every friend with a bad back made a bee line for my chair when they came to visit, so others had found that sitting on something soft caused low back problems too.

Three car accidents later, I've had more bouts with the sciatic problem. the best eliminator of the pain was strengthening the area with regeneration therapy, or Prolotherapy with Hacketts solution. That was the best pain reducer I did, and the results were permanent, or near permanent.

If I had not done the Prolotherapy, I would not be taking long walks, swimming laps, or dancing. I would probably be spending the majority of my time, as before, doing anything possible to reduce the pain, and spendinga lot of time in bed, or on heating pads.

This says been a real learning experience. I'd never even heard of prolotherapy before Mike got his story out and knew little about it until we started talking about it on the forums. It's is great to know there are other options out there. It sounds like it can be really effective!

Congratulations on the success with low dose Naltrexone Angel and from coming back from such a difficult situation - I hope you continue to improve!

There is another thread on this somewhere on this forum--maybe do a search?--you'll find a few comments there. (Maybe this discussion could be moved there?)

Several are trying it, including me! I have been on the lowest dose recommended--1.5 mg--for 2 weeks now. It has definitely helped me with a bit more energy and a bit more muscle strength and less muscle recovery time after exercise. I hope to raise the dose soon--I am just waiting till I feel that all the changes that are going to happen with this low dose, have happened.

Some people, but not all, have a transient experience of insomnia (sometimes severe)--I didn't. From everything I have read, it is a very safe drug with a lot of good potential for us.

I am using depade (short release Naltrexone) in a liquid form not from a compounding pharmacy. I think if it was not working, I would not have less fatigue using it. Another user I talked to had the same experience with LDN. Is LDN helping you?If so, in what way?

When I looked on the internet, it said that depade is a time-released version of naltrexone. I don't know if this is correct, but when you are taking LDN for conditions like we have here, you do NOT want a time-release version, rather one that hits the system all at once. On lowdosenaltrexone.org, it says to be very sure you do not get any type that is time-released.

I am also taking it, slowly moving my dosage up--now at 2mg. I am having good results. More muscle strength, less exercise recovery time, more energy and my body temperature is coming up to normal. I have been taking it for 3 weeks. I plan to very slowly increase my dose until I reach somewhere between the optimal 4 - 4.5 mg.

Thanks for your comment. I just googled Naltrexone and the only extended release form is Vivitrol which is an injection.I hope I am not wrong. The only thing LDN is not addressing is pain. I don't think it has anything to do with the quality of the pills because my muscle pain completely subsided in the first few days and gradually came back. Higher doses makes me drowsy to the point that I want to sleep all day.

Wondering where that other section on LDN is?
Anway, I am interested and have no idea how it works. Is your doctor able to prescribe an off-label use? And which compounding pharmacies do you have confidence in.
Thanks.